This is a controversial subject since Mitch Richmond was part of RunTMC and was one of the most popular players on the team at the time. The team was also a playoff team his last 2 seasons here. I believe that trading Richmond for Owens was the right move at the time. The team was horible at PF and Center and even with RunTMC, they were barely a playoff team and were never going to become an elite team. Owens was a multitalented PF in college and was an ideal fit for the run and gun team. Since the team had Marcilionis back then, Richmond was expendable to fill a need! What stuffed the team in the 1992/93 season was INJURIES! 1991/92 season was the best season the Warriors had in decades and better than any season RunTMC had! 1992/93 season was full of injuries as Owens and Sarunas were out most of the season as well as Mullin and some others being out a considerable amount of time. Billy Owens was no superstar but he was more than decent and rebounded better than any Warrior player beofre then for quite some time. He filled the need and the team responded in his rookie season by being better than they ever were under Nelson and ever would be!

Like wise today, the team has a great SG in Jason Richardson (another Rich SG ) and the thought is that maybe he should be traded for a star PF or potential star PF. Though Owens was a draft pick who hadn't played a single nba game, the point was to fill a need. I'm not for going for a draft pick PF, even though this draft is full of very good PFs, but rather for possibly packaging JRich, one other decent player and the draft pick for a star PF like Gasol, Al Jefferson or even Garnett. JRich is coming off an injuryprone season where he produced less than he has since his rookie season so his trade value is at its lowest but Monta Ellis is under contract for one more season only and like Marcilionis, he can take JRich's place.

Similar situation but not totally as Richmond was at his best when he was traded and was basically traded alone for Owens, where JRich was injured alot this season and performed at a less standard then he has the past two seasons and thus will have to be traded along with another two players for a very good PF

Reckon Nelson just said that because it was the popular opinion! The trade resulted in an immediate improvement the following season and it was injuries in 1992/93 and 1993/94 (with Sarunas and Hardaway out the whole season and Mullin out the first 2 months) and then bad trades that offseason and the next following 2 seasons (Owens for Seikaly, Webber for Gugliotta - Just didn't workout and those two weren't built for run and gun)

This is a ludicrous idea. Mitch Richmond was one of the best pure scorers to ever play the game and Billy Owens was swollen member who never amounted to anything.

Had the team kept Richmond (and Hardaway), it would have climbed to the top of the Western Conference a few times (definately top 4 or 5 seed for years running), but would have been inevitably stopped by Michael Jordan's Bulls, should they ever had gone to the Finals.

Richmond was a 25 PPG scorer. As was Mullin. Hardaway eventually averaged 20 and 10. Those 3, together in their prime, would have been deadly.

In 1990/91, all 3 of Mullin, Richmond and Hardaway were well over 20pt a game scorers, I think it was Hardaway 22.9pts and 10.2asts, Richmond 23.9pts and Mullin 25.4pts off the top of my head but I think I'm close. Those 3 could never do any more than that and the team still won 50 games at best! With Owens as a rookie, they jumped to 55 wins. The only way the team was ever going to win with Richmond is if a very good PF or Center was attained and that would never happen if the team continued to scrape into the playoffs and never got a high lottery pick!

When stepping back and looking at it, the team improved immediately after this trade and only injuries and future garbage trades destroyed it all

hindsight is 20-20. Owens was highly hyped at the time, so it was understandable that Nelson did it, but not a good move in retro. Of course 2 others you mentioned, owens for seikaly and webber for gugliotta looked awful at the time. best 2 trades I can recall ws doing in past 20 years have been BD for Speedy and the dungmurphy for Jackington...

To Live is A Value Judgment - Albert Camus
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Who knows how that team could have been? That year we were playing without Timmy and I think Sarunas! That would have been one of the greatest W's teams ever! To think that Timmy was out with an ACL injury and we had Avery Johnson playing PG!

It's really too bad that the whole Nellie and Webber situation couldn't workout! Webber had a clause in his contract and he felt like that the W's fans turned against him and that also lead to him wanting out! Webber was the biggest crybaby that broke all of our hearts!!!

The fact of the matter is that Richmond was already proven while Owens was still receiving hype. I think i'll take proven talent over on going hype. Why should people believe that trade was just ridiculous? Simple answer... Longest active playoff drought held by the '95-present Warriors. I mean c'mon, how could you possibly believe this trade was actually good if the man who composed the trade admitted it was one of the most dumbest moves he's ever made.